Shane Vander Hart has fallen on his sword for Big Liberty. Shane’s ill-advised post on RPI’s Facebook page cost him his job, deservedly. The mock “racial flowchart” had no business on a state party’s social media page …

Shane Vander Hart’s Friday post was symptomatic of the juvenile behavior at RPIHQ and given some the other idiocy often displayed on the page, he likely figured the flowchart would fit right in … It’s unfortunate Shane lost his job, while other egregious acts go unpunished … In fact, I bet if the national media hadn’t caught wind of the post, it would have also gone unpunished ..

I’ve had my differences with Shane, but I believe he is a good guy. He made a dumb mistake. Now he has to find another way to feed his family and that is unfortunate. I hope he finds something else soon.

However, the party will take another step backwards if the SCC elects Danny Carroll as co-chair next Saturday. Carroll’s 2010 speech at the State Capitol, where he railed against Governor Branstad and the Republican Party, should be the only example you need of why he would make a terrible co-chair … SCC members, if you watch this video and still think Danny Carroll is the best man for the job, you deserve to lose yours:

Since I said that, I predict Carroll will win the election over Eric Rosenthal next Saturday, with perhaps Chairman Spiker casting the deciding vote … Big Liberty thinks linking up with the BVP crowd is their ticket to salvation staying in power. Problem is, many in the BVP crowd can’t stand the Paulistinians, and many also believe Carroll has gone off the deep end since losing reelection to the Iowa House in ’08 and the state chairman’s race in ‘09.

RPI isn’t the only state party doing stupid things on a consistent basis. Over at Iowa Democratic Party HQ, they called up their press release dispersal unit, aka The Des Moines Register, to demand Governor Branstad return the $1 million donated to him by the Republican Governor’s Association. Why? Because Chris Christie and Bob McDonnell are tied up in scandals at the moment …

Once again, the Dems hypocrisy knows no bounds … Governor Christie has not been charged with any crimes and BobMcDonnell is no longer in office, nor has he been convicted of any crime … Unfortunately for the Iowa Democrats, their pals Phyllis and Marla Stevens cannot say the same …

The Stevens were convicted of embezzling $6 million from Aviva. They gave large chunks of that stolen money to a slew of Democrats, including the Iowa Democratic Party, Bruce Braley, Leonard Boswelland a host of otherIowa Democrats, plus Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, John Kerry and many more.

Many of the Stevens’ pals gathered in downtown Des Moines Saturday morning to begin plotting the coronation of Queen Hillary Clinton. The Ready for Hillary super PAC is merging Clinton and Obama’s former campaign leaders and laying the groundwork for her 2016 run. They also plan to help 2014Dem candidates in the state …

Among the notable attendees at the coronation planning convention were Iowa’s new Abortion QueenStaci Appel, Jack Hatch’scampaign managerGrant Woodard, former milk carton modelTyler Olson and former Iowa Attorney General Bonnie Campbell …

One attendee told the group that the appearance they are coronating Hillary is a problem. Her comment fell on deaf ears. Kinda like those pleas for help from the four Americans killed in Benghazi.

According to NBC’s Today Show, Des Moines is the wealthiest city in the U.S. How did I miss out on this gravy train? … Unfortunately, thanks to Obamacare, that moniker might not last long. Des Moines is one of the insurance capitals of the U.S. and Moody’s Investor Service just downgraded the outlook for insurance companies from stable to negative, thanks to Obamacare. Once again, Congressman Braley’s decisions negatively impact Iowans.

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mark Jacobs attempted to clarify his stances on cap and trade, the debt ceiling and more during an interview with WHO Radio’s Simon Conway on Friday. He did not succeed … Simon is a fantastic interrogator behind the mic and any politician who goes on his show better know his stuff or he/she could get steamrolled.

Barack Obama delivers the State of the Union speech Tuesday. I predict at least 97 uses of “me, my and/or I” from President Selfie.

I wonder if the SOTU speech will top Obama’s celebration of the Roe v. Wade anniversary in terms of outright ridiculous statements. He praised the Supreme Court decision and ended the statement with this: “Because this is a country where everyone deserves the same freedom and opportunity to fulfill their dreams.” … Somehow, “except for those 55 million dead babies” was omitted from the last sentence.

Maybe President Selfie will praise late-term abortion fan, and noted liar, Wendy Davis. The Texas gubernatorial candidate’s so-called “amazing life story” is chock full of embellishments and outright lies …

I was surprised to hear State Rep. Tom Shaw (R-Laurens) decided not to run for another term. We sometimes disagree on tactics, but Shaw is a good man who does what he believes is right and serves honorably … Former Republican State Senator Mike Sextonannounced plans to run for the seat.

The four-way GOP primary in Senate District 15 became a three-way primary. Zach Nunn has decided to run for House District 30 instead, challenging freshman Dem Joe Riding.

Finally, I’m very disappointed in the lack of Save the Gingers platform planks proposed at the caucuses. Why do you people hate liberty?

That’s it for this week. Thanks for dropping by. As you think, so shall you become.

About the Author

Kevin Hall

Kevin Hall brings almost two decades of journalistic experience to TheIowaRepublican. Starting in college as a radio broadcaster, Hall eventually became a television anchor/reporter for stations in North Carolina, Missouri, and Iowa. During the 2007 caucus cycle, Hall changed careers and joined the political realm. He was the northwest Iowa field director for Fred Thompson's presidential campaign. Hall helped Terry Branstad return to the governor's office by organizing southwest Iowa for Branstad's 2010 campaign. Hall serves as a reporter/columnist for TheIowaRepublican.com.